A virtual panel discussion on Thursday, Jan. 12 will discuss the presence of police in schools and its impact on students, parents and crime.
The Fraser Valley Human Dignity Coalition, in partnership with the Abbotsford Restorative Justice and Advocacy Association (ARJAA), hosts the event, which starts at 6 p.m., to discuss the current school liaison officer (SLO) program and what an upcoming review process might look like.
There will be three panelists at the event, including Sgt. Kevin Murray of the Abbotsford Police Department (APD) who oversees SLOs known as the youth squad. Murray served as a youth squad officer for six years and is now the officer in charge of the operations support branch.
Another panelist is Preet Rai, who has served as an Abbotsford trustee for more than 14 years.
David de Wit, district principal of learning support services – Safe Schools, will also speak. De Wit is the liaison between the school district and the youth liaison officer program.
Members of the APD have long served in high schools across the city, but a recent directive from the BC Office of Human Rights is putting the program under review.
RELATED: Abbotsford trustees supportive of current school liaison officer program
Commissioner Kasari Govender said concerns about SLOs have been raised by marginalized students, their families and communities.
In the letter to school trustees, Govender wrote, “Out of respect for the rights of our students, I strongly recommend that all school districts end the use of SLOs until the impact of these programs can be established empirically.”
Districts that want to continue the program must produce evidence that the need cannot be met through non-police alternatives and explain how they will address the concerns of Indigenous, Black and other marginalized communities.
In a board meeting in December, Abbotsford school district superintendent Kevin Godden said that they and the APD were “committed to improving the program for the benefit of all students and families” and would be thoughtfully reviewing the effectiveness of their SLO program.
The Fraser Valley Human Dignity Coalition is run by the Diversity Education Program at Archway Community Services. The coalition is a collective of diverse organizations, advocates, community groups and individuals who work to address issues of racism and hate in the community by promoting the values of diversity, human rights and dignity.
ARJAA is a non-profit organization that engages community conflict outside of the traditional court system by implementing restorative principles in facilitated conferences between responsible parties and those who have been harmed.
Visit Archway.ca/FVHDC to register for the virtual event.
RELATED: New Westminster school district votes to immediately cancel police liaison program